2 Kings4

Elisha performs several miracles, beginning with the multiplication of a widow's oil to pay her debts. He then blesses a hospitable Shunammite woman with a son, whom he later miraculously raises from the dead after the child suddenly dies. The chapter concludes with Elisha purifying poisoned food and miraculously feeding one hundred men with limited provisions during a famine.

Elisha Multiplies the Widow's Oil

Now there cried a certain woman of the wives of the sons of the prophets to Elisha, saying, “Your servant my husband is dead. You know that your servant feared the LORD. Now the creditor has come to take for himself my two children to be slaves.”

Elisha said to her, “What shall I do for you? Tell me: what do you have in the house?” She said, “Your handmaid has nothing in the house, except a pot of oil.”

Then he said, “Go, borrow containers from of all your neighbors, even empty containers. Don’t borrow just a few.

You shall go in, and shut the door on you and on your sons, and pour out into all those containers; and you shall set aside that which is full.”

So she went from him, and shut the door on her and on her sons; they brought the containers to her, and she poured out.

When the containers were full, she said to her son, “Bring me another container.” He said to her, “There isn’t another container.” The oil stopped flowing.

Then she came and told the man of God. He said, “Go, sell the oil, and pay your debt; and you and your sons live on the rest.”

The Shunammite Woman Shows Hospitality

It fell on a day, that Elisha passed to Shunem, where there was a prominent woman; and she persuaded him to eat bread. So it was, that as often as he passed by, he turned in there to eat bread.

She said to her husband, “See now, I perceive that this is a holy man of God, that passes by us continually.

Please let us make a little room on the wall. Let us set for him there a bed, a table, a chair, and a lamp stand. It shall be, when he comes to us, that he shall turn in there.”

One day he came there, and he turned into the room and lay there.

He said to Gehazi his servant, “Call this Shunammite.” When he had called her, she stood before him.

He said to him, “Say now to her, ‘Behold, you have cared for us with all this care. What is to be done for you? Would you like to be spoken for to the king, or to the captain of the army?’” She answered, “I dwell among my own people.”

He said, “What then is to be done for her?” Gehazi answered, “Most certainly she has no son, and her husband is old.”

He said, “Call her.” When he had called her, she stood in the door.

He said, “At this season, when the time comes around, you will embrace a son.” She said, “No, my lord, you man of God, do not lie to your handmaid.”

The woman conceived, and bore a son at that season, when the time came around, as Elisha had said to her.

The Shunammite’s Son Dies

When the child was grown, one day he went out to his father to the reapers.

He said to his father, “My head! My head!” He said to his servant, “Carry him to his mother.”

When he had taken him, and brought him to his mother, he sat on her knees until noon, and then died.

She went up and laid him on the bed of the man of God, and shut the door on him, and went out.

She called to her husband, and said, “Please send me one of the servants, and one of the donkeys, that I may run to the man of God, and come again.”

He said, “Why would you want go to him today? It is neither new moon nor Sabbath.” She said, “It’s alright.”

Then she saddled a donkey, and said to her servant, “Drive, and go forward! Don’t slow down for me, unless I ask you to.”

So she went, and came to the man of God to Mount Carmel. When the man of God saw her afar off, he said to Gehazi his servant, “Behold, there is the Shunammite.

Please run now to meet her, and ask her, ‘Is it well with you? Is it well with your husband? Is it well with the child?’” She answered, “It is well.”

When she came to the man of God to the hill, she caught hold of his feet. Gehazi came near to thrust her away; but the man of God said, “Leave her alone; for her soul is troubled within her; and the LORD has hidden it from me, and has not told me.”

Then she said, “Did I desire a son of my lord? Didn’t I say, Do not deceive me?”

Then he said to Gehazi, “Tuck your cloak into your belt, take my staff in your hand, and go your way. If you meet any man, don’t greet him; and if anyone greets you, don’t answer him again. Then lay my staff on the face of the child.”

The mother of the child said, “As the LORD lives, and as your soul lives, I will not leave you.” He arose, and followed her.

Gehazi passed on before them, and laid the staff on the face of the child; but there was neither voice, nor hearing. Therefore he returned to meet him, and told him, saying, “The child has not awakened.”

When Elisha had come into the house, behold, the child was dead, and laid on his bed.

Elisha Raises the Boy

He went in therefore, and shut the door on them both, and prayed to the LORD.

He went up, and lay on the child, and put his mouth on his mouth, and his eyes on his eyes, and his hands on his hands. He stretched himself on him; and the flesh of the child grew warm.

Then he returned, and walked in the house once back and forth; and went up, and stretched himself on him. Then the child sneezed seven times, and the child opened his eyes.

He called Gehazi, and said, “Call this Shunammite!” So he called her. When she had come in to him, he said, “Take up your son.”

Then she went in, and fell at his feet, and bowed herself to the ground; and she took up her son, and went out.

Elisha Purifies the Poisoned Stew

Elisha came again to Gilgal. There was a famine in the land; and the sons of the prophets were sitting before him; and he said to his servant, “Set on the great pot, and boil stew for the sons of the prophets.”

One went out into the field to gather herbs, and found a wild vine, and gathered of it wild gourds his lap full, and came and shred them into the pot of stew; for they didn’t recognize them.

So they poured out for the men to eat. As they were eating some of the stew, they cried out, and said, “Man of God, there is death in the pot!” They could not eat of it.

But he said, “Then bring meal.” He cast it into the pot; and he said, “Pour out for the people, that they may eat.” There was no harm in the pot.

Elisha Feeds a Hundred Men

A man from Baal Shalishah came, and brought the man of God bread of the first fruits, twenty loaves of barley, and fresh ears of grain in his sack. He said, “Give to the people, that they may eat.”

His servant said, “What, should I set this before a hundred men?” But he said, “Give the people, that they may eat; for thus says the LORD, ‘They will eat, and will have some left over.’”

So he set it before them, and they ate, and left some of it, according to the LORD’s word.

Study Notes for 2 Kings 4

Verse 1

The 'sons of the prophets' were a dedicated community group. The widow’s desperation stems from the law that allowed creditors to take children as bondmen (cf. Exod 21:7; Lev 25:39), highlighting her immediate financial and familial crisis.

Verse 2

Elisha’s question focuses on what God can work *with*. Even the smallest resource possessed by the faithful—a pot of oil—becomes the catalyst for divine provision.

Verse 3

The command to borrow 'not a few' vessels tests the woman's faith and obedience. The extent of the miracle depended directly on her preparation and expectation.

Verse 6

The oil stopped only when there were no more vessels to fill, illustrating that God’s provision is often limited only by the capacity of human faith or need.

Verse 7

Elisha ensures the woman not only pays her debt but also has enough resources remaining to sustain her and her children, demonstrating holistic divine care and security.

Verse 8

Shunem was a town in the Jezreel Valley. The description 'a great woman' (Hebrew: *ishshah g'dolah*) implies she was wealthy, influential, and pious, recognizing Elisha’s status.

Verse 10

Building a separate chamber on the roof ('alîyah) shows extraordinary reverence and hospitality, aiming to provide the prophet a quiet, dedicated space for rest and prayer.

Verse 13

Elisha offers to use his influence with the royal court. Her reply, 'I dwell among mine own people,' expresses contentment and independence, suggesting she trusts God’s provision over political favor.

Verse 14

Gehazi, Elisha's servant, identifies the woman's deep, unspoken need. Having a son was vital for inheritance, security, and continuation of the family line in Israelite society.

Verse 16

The promise of a son 'according to the time of life' (i.e., the next year) parallels the miraculous promise given to Abraham and Sarah (Gen 18:10), signaling a divine intervention in nature.

Verse 18

The child is old enough to join his father in the field during the harvest, suggesting several years have passed since his miraculous birth.

Verse 23

New Moons and Sabbaths were typical days for seeking prophetic counsel or instruction. Her brief answer, 'It shall be well,' expresses determined faith, masking the tragedy from her husband.

Verse 25

The woman travels approximately 20 miles to Mount Carmel, a significant location associated with Elisha’s powerful ministry, demonstrating her urgency and faith.

Verse 26

Her repeated affirmation, 'It is well' (shalom), is a powerful statement of belief, refusing to confess the death until she reaches the prophet himself.

Verse 27

Elisha admits that God had intentionally concealed the tragedy from him, demonstrating that prophetic knowledge is a gift received from God, not an inherent human quality.

Verse 28

Her grief-stricken question reminds Elisha that the pain of losing a miraculous gift is greater than the pain of never having received it at all.

Verse 29

Gehazi is sent ahead with Elisha's staff, symbolizing delegated authority. The command not to salute anyone emphasizes the extreme urgency of the mission (cf. Luke 10:4).

Verse 30

The mother’s refusal to leave Elisha shows she has faith not in the object (the staff) or the servant, but in Elisha's personal presence and God's power working through him directly.

Verse 31

The failure of the staff alone indicates that God's power sometimes requires the prophet's direct engagement, prayer, and sustained physical effort.

Verse 33

Elisha shuts the door, emphasizing the necessity of solitary prayer and direct communion with God when undertaking a momentous miracle.

Verse 34

This physical contact (mouth to mouth, eyes to eyes) is an intense act of identification and prayer, replicating the actions of Elijah when he raised the widow's son (1 Kings 17:21).

Verse 35

The process involves sustained prayer and effort. The boy sneezing seven times marks the completion of the restoration of life.

Verse 37

The woman's reaction is profound gratitude and worship, recognizing God’s miraculous power delivered through the prophet, receiving her son back as a second gift.

Verse 38

Elisha returns to Gilgal, a location associated with covenant renewal. The 'dearth in the land' (famine) demonstrates the ongoing hardship faced by the prophetic community.

Verse 39

The 'wild gourds' were likely colocynth, known for its bitter, purgative, and occasionally lethal properties, mistaken for edible vegetables due to starvation.

Verse 41

The addition of meal (flour) acts as a symbolic agent of purification. The miracle demonstrates God's ability to transform death and toxic situations into life and safety through the prophet's word.

Verse 42

The man brought 'firstfruits' (barley loaves and corn), an act of pious devotion that acknowledges God’s sovereignty. This offering becomes the source material for the next miracle.

Verse 43

The servant's disbelief highlights the extreme scarcity. Elisha’s confident command, 'for thus saith the LORD,' establishes the multiplication as a divinely guaranteed act, not human probability.

Verse 44

This miracle of mass feeding foreshadows the later ministry of Jesus (e.g., Matt 14:13-21) and concludes the chapter by demonstrating God's abundant provision through his prophet.

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2 Kings4

Elisha Multiplies the Widow's Oil

The Shunammite Woman Shows Hospitality

The Shunammite’s Son Dies

Elisha Raises the Boy

Elisha Purifies the Poisoned Stew

Elisha Feeds a Hundred Men

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